Brin Riley, a University of Wisconsin-Madison senior, woke up to the iconic sound of a Facebook message iPhone notification from her roommate Saturday when she found out her residence was being robbed.
According to Riley, her roommate in their West Gilman Street apartment first woke up to the sound of the intruder, 33-year-old Xavier Garner, attempting to enter through one of the doors. Garner eventually made his way into the apartment and allegedly peered into the roommate’s bedroom, according to a report from Madison Police Department spokesperson Joel DeSpain. The roommate contacted police once he realized the intruder was not visiting a friend.
A third roommate confronted Garner after waking up around 3 a.m. to use the bathroom, according to Riley. The report states Garner armed himself with a screwdriver and commanded the third roommate to sit in his room and wait until police left the scene.
“This whole time, myself and my roommates were basically on the Facebook group chat talking to each other,” Riley said. “We were also getting instructions from the police dispatcher through my roommate Brian who was on the phone with them.”
The roommates remained connected during the entire event through social media and were able to communicate their descriptions to police to differentiate themselves from the intruder, according to Riley.
“We have been using Facebook because not all of us have iPhones so it’s just easier,” Riley said.
Police were eventually able to arrest Garner with the assistance of a Taser and police dog.
